DEFENCE

Cyprus

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which rights and benefits enjoyed by UK and Commonwealth Forces under the treaty relating to the Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus do not extend to non-Commonwealth Forces operating on the bases; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The rights and benefits accorded to United Kingdom and Commonwealth Forces under the 1960 Treaty of Establishment are set out in Annex C to the treaty papers, which is effectively a Status of Forces Agreement between the UK and Republic of Cyprus (RoC) for UK and Commonwealth forces operating in and visiting the Republic. The benefits the treaty confers include: freedom of movement between the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) and the RoC, jurisdictional protection for certain offences committed in the RoC, exemption from RoC taxes and import duties, and the right to bear arms. Non-Commonwealth forces are not covered under these arrangements and would need to negotiate their own status of forces arrangements with the RoC.
	Any Commonwealth and non-Commonwealth forces entering and operating within the SBAs who are covered by the Visiting Forces Act 1952 (which has been extended to the SBAs) are accorded generally the same rights and benefits as similar forces visiting the UK. These include jurisdictional protection and exemptions from taxes and import duties. Our ability to grant full tax and duty exemptions to non-Commonwealth forces is restricted by our treaty commitment to collect taxes, rates and fees from non-entitled persons on behalf of the RoC. Countries not covered by the Visiting Forces Act do not enjoy any privileges within the SBAs other than consent to operate within the bases and the use of SBA facilities. However, minor concessions, such as access to military messes and bars, can be agreed case-by-case for practical purposes.

Deployment

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British service personnel are (a) deployed and (b) stationed in (i) Germany, (ii) Northern Ireland, (iii) Bosnia-Herzegovina, (iv) Croatia, (v) Kosovo, (vi) Albania, (vii) the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, (viii) Sierra Leone, (ix) the Gulf Region, (x) Turkey, (xi) Gibraltar, (xii) Belize, (xiii) Kenya, (xiv) Canada, (xv) the Falkland Islands, (xvi) Cyprus, (xvii) Brunei and (xviii) Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: This data is compiled from a number of sources. As at late September the approximate numbers of British service personnel deployed or stationed in the locations specified were:
	
		
			 Location Deployed Stationed 
		
		
			 Germany 0 21,250 
			 Northern Ireland 0 11,180 
			 Bosnia-Herzegovina 720 0 
			 Croatia 0 0 
			 Kosovo 180 0 
			 Albania 0 0 
			 FYR of Macedonia 10 0 
			 Sierra Leone 20 0 
			 The Gulf Region 9,070 0 
			 Turkey 0 0 
			 Gibraltar 0 490 
			 Belize 0 30 
			 Kenya(1) 0 10 
			 Canada(1) 0 210 
			 The Falkland Islands 1,270 0 
			 Afghanistan 650 nil 
			 Cyprus 410 3,100 
			 Brunei nil 800 
		
	
	(1) Training team only.
	Note:
	All figures rounded to the nearest 10.
	The figures in the table do not include personnel serving in loan and diplomatic posts or on training detachments.

HMS Grimsby

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the incident involving HMS Grimsby in the Thames, close to Tilbury on 29 September when a rating fell overboard as the vessel collided with other craft.

Adam Ingram: HMS Grimsby was undertaking routine survey work in the River Thames. She suffered a problem with her propulsion system while preparing to rescue a crew member who had fallen overboard, and struck two civilian vessels that were alongside a jetty. Neither of the two civilian vessels had people on board and there were no Royal Navy casualties.
	The crew member was recovered unharmed by an RNLI rescue boat from Gravesend.

Hurricane Ivan

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the role of the UK armed forces in helping survivors of Hurricane Ivan.

Adam Ingram: In recent weeks, the United Kingdom armed forces have provided significant emergency humanitarian assistance in the Caribbean following Hurricane Ivan. The personnel of the Royal Navy frigate HMS Richmond and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Wave Ruler provided emergency humanitarian assistance for Grenada and the Cayman Islands.
	Emergency assistance was provided with communications, essential infrastructure, damage assessment, medical support and food distribution. The Royal Navy's role in the aftermath of natural disasters that afflict the region is to provide immediate assistance until such time as full scale humanitarian relief can arrive and the civilian rebuilding effort can begin.
	In support of reconstruction efforts on the Cayman Islands, the RAF also supported a deployment from the Bermuda Defence Force with a C-130 aircraft.
	As the hurricane season continues, HMS Richmond and RFA Wave Ruler remain in the region, ready to respond in the event of another humanitarian crisis.

Sudan

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the numbers of armed forces personnel HM Government will commit to the United Nations monitoring force in Sudan during the six-year interim period; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 4 October 2004, Official Report, column 1891W, to the hon. Member for Guildford (Sue Doughty).

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Education Maintenance Allowances

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many applications there have been for education maintenance allowances for the academic year 2004–05 in the Morley and Rothwell constituency; and how many have commenced payment.

Ivan Lewis: Information on the number of young people who have applied, enrolled and been paid EMA is available at local authority level. By the end of September 2,557 young people in the Leeds local authority area were enrolled for EMA by their school or college, with 2,281 having received an EMA payment. The Assessment and Payment Body is currently turning around correctly completed applications within 10 working days and 3,682 young people in Leeds have now received a Notice of Entitlement to EMA. By the end of September 5,994 young people had applied for EMA from the Leeds local authority area, and of these just over a quarter had applied in September. Incorrect applications are returned to the applicant, some of whom will be ineligible for EMA, while others may have decided to enter full-time work or work based learning. We expect the number of young people receiving EMA to increase over the next few weeks as those who applied late or whose applications needed to be returned, have their applications assessed and are enrolled for payment.

Mature Students

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what financial help his Department offers mature students wishing to study for a degree.

Kim Howells: holding answer 11 October 2004
	Eligible full-time undergraduate students are entitled in 2004/05 to income assessed grants for fees (up to £1,150) and HE grants (up to £1,000); and if aged under 50, or between 50 and 54 and planning to work after their course, to student loans (up to £5,050 in London) with 25 per cent. of the loan income assessed. While the rates are the same as for younger students, mature students benefit disproportionately because the income assessed for independent students is normally lower and more get the higher levels of support. For example, we expect around a third of all those getting the full HE grant to be independent students, although such students make up only around 15 per cent. of the total student population.
	For students with dependants, additional grants include adult dependants grant (worth up to £2,335), Parents Learning Allowance (worth up to £1,330) and a Childcare Grant (worth up to £8,840). As the grants are targeted at students with dependants the main beneficiaries are mature students.
	Part-time undergraduate students of any age, and this will include many mature students, may receive income assessed fee grants of up to £575 and course grants of up to £250.
	In addition, student parents are eligible to receive Child Tax Credit from the Inland Revenue and disabled students are eligible for DfES disabled students allowances which are not income assessed. Students may also receive additional financial assistance through the Access to Learning Fund, which is funded by the Department and administered by institutions. Priority groups for payments from the fund include student parents and other full-time mature students (especially those with existing financial commitments).

Pupil Data Registration

Eric Forth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether the advice to schools on the TeacherNet website of 20 July regarding use of wireless technologies for pupil data registration and registering of licences is mandatory; and whether liability rests with (a) the Department and (b) schools.

Charles Clarke: The advice to schools regarding the use of wireless technologies for pupil data registration and the necessity of licences under UK patent EP(GB) 0 664 061 on the TeacherNet website dated 20 July 2004 is just that, advice, and therefore not mandatory. The advice highlights the issue by setting out my Department's interpretation of the judgment in the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, Patent Court dated 17 June 2004.
	In common with all products and services, schools are liable for the consequences of their procurement decisions. Before making such decisions, schools are able to seek detailed advice from their relevant service or product supplier, or whoever provides their technical advice, such as their local education authority.

Skill Training

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many adults have achieved Basic Skills Level in each year since 2001 for which figures are available.

Ivan Lewis: "Skills for Life" caters for the literacy and numeracy skills needs of post 16 learners, that is those who are no longer in compulsory education. The national strategy has an initial target to improve the skills of 750,000 adults in England by 2004, with the commitment to improve the skills of 1.5 million adults by 2007 and 2.25 million adults by 2010. Individuals count towards the target if they improve their skills evidenced by achieving a relevant national qualification, including Key Skills in Communication and Application of Number at Levels 1 and 2, and GCSEs in English and Maths.
	The following table shows available data on adult learners achieving Skills for Life qualifications between the launch of the strategy in April 2001 to July 2003. Data for 2003–04 are not yet available.
	
		Learners achieving Skills for Life qualifications in England to 2002/03 through LSC funded FE providers, Prison Service and Jobcentre Plus
		
			  Annual achievements (thousand) 
		
		
			 April 2001—July 2001(2) 150 
			 August 2001—July 2002 204 
			 August 2002—July 2003 196 
		
	
	(2) Achievements include learning started earlier in the academic year.

PRIME MINISTER

Ministerial Spouses (Security)

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister what rules govern the public provision of security support for relatives of Ministers when such persons are abroad on personal trips.

Tony Blair: It has been the practice of successive governments not to comment on security issues.

TRANSPORT

Access for All Fund

Archie Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the budget for the Access for All fund is, broken down by rail region; and if he will list the criteria for prioritising its distribution.

Tony McNulty: Planned Government expenditure on rail for the next three years will be published in due course. The Strategic Rail Authority expects to consult on a Disability Strategy by the end of this year. The consultation document will propose criteria for prioritising the Access for All fund.

Rail Use

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment has been made of the accuracy of figures for rail use; and whether this takes account of non-payment of fares;
	(2)  what plans he has to discuss non-payment of rail fares; and what account is taken of non-payment of fares in planning for future rail use, including the expansion of services;
	(3)  how many rail users there were on the Cheltenham to London service in the last period for which figures are available; and what estimate has been made of leakage of usage arising from non-payment of fares.

Tony McNulty: The calculation of rail use by passengers does not take account of ticketless travel as it is based on the numbers of tickets sold. In the year to 18 September 2004, figures provided by First Great Western show that there were 191,006 passenger journeys between Cheltenham and London terminals. It is estimated that the fares evasion level on the network is between 3 per cent. and 7 per cent. overall.
	The Government are currently engaged in a consultation on ticketless travel and the penalty fare level. The consultation period ends on 26 October.

Renewable Transport Fuels

Gillian Shephard: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he intends to introduce a renewable transport fuels obligation under the Energy Act 2004.

David Jamieson: holding answer 14 October 2004
	No decision has yet been taken on whether the Government should introduce any form of renewable transport fuels obligation. It is one of a number of policy options which the Government is currently considering as a way of supporting the development and use of biofuels in the UK. Before introducing any obligation, the Government would consult extensively on how it might operate.

Rolling Stock (Fenchurch Street)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will instruct the Strategic Rail Authority to withhold permission for further removals of rolling stock from the Fenchurch street line.

Tony McNulty: The Strategic Rail Authority, working with the rail industry, must have the ability to make decisions on the best deployment of rolling stock across the whole network. However there are currently no plans for any further re-deployment of rolling stock from the Fenchurch street line.

Rolling Stock (Fenchurch Street)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions the Strategic Rail Authority has had with c2c about the removal of rolling stock from the Fenchurch Street line; and what approvals they have given to c2c.

Tony McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to the written reply given to him on 13 September 2004, Official Report, column 1383W.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

CDC

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 3 March 2004, Official Report, column 916W, on CDC, what proportion of CDC-funded travel involved an overnight stay in each year since 1999.

Hilary Benn: CDC does not keep a record of this information, and to obtain it would incur a disproportionate cost.

CDC

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list CDC/Actis Capital funded agribusiness (a) new investments and (b) disposals since June 2003 broken down by (i) country, (ii) investment fund and (iii) investment size.

Hilary Benn: New investments and disposals by CDC in the agribusiness sector by country and fund since June 2003 are as follows:
	
		
			  Country Fund 
		
		
			 New agribusiness investments   
			 Fertisa Port Ecuador Latin America 
			 Middle East Food and Trade Company SAE Egypt Africa 
			 Kilombero Valley Teak Company Ltd. Tanzania Assets 
			 Tanzania Tea Packers Tanzania Assets 
			
			 Agribusiness disposals   
			 Favorita Fruit Company Ltd. Ecuador Latin America 
			 Agro Tech Foods Ltd. India Assets 
			 Mumias Sugar Company Ltd. Kenya Assets 
			 Ramu Sugar Sri Lanka Assets 
			 Mah Boon Krong Sirichai Thailand Assets 
		
	
	The total value of new investments at cost was US$17 million, while disposals amounted to US$22 million.

CDC

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list non-CDC third-party capital under Actis Capital's management broken down by (a) investor, (b) country, (c) investment fund and (d) amount.

Hilary Benn: The following table sets out the various Actis funds and details (by fund), the country/region, the size of the fund, the number of non-CDC investors and the percentage investment in each fund by them.
	The amounts invested by non-CDC third party investors are confidential and is commercially sensitive and are therefore confidential.
	
		
			 Fund name Country/ region Fund size (US$m) Number of investors (excluding CDC) Percentage invested by non-CDC investors 
		
		
			 Actis Malaysia Fund 1 LP(3) Malaysia 60 1 33 
			 CGU-CDC China  Investment Company China 100 1 50 
			 Comafin Africa 60 7 58 
			 South Asia Regional Fund (SARF) South Asia 105 15 46 
		
	
	(3) First close

CDC

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list investors in CDC's Aureos fund broken down by (a) amount and (b) proportion.

Hilary Benn: The following table gives information on the size of the various Aureos funds, the number of non-GDC investors and the percentage investment in the fund by them The amounts invested by non-CDC third party investors are commercially sensitive and therefore, confidential.
	
		
			 Fund name Fund size (US$ million) Number of investors (excluding CDC) Percentage invested by non-CDC investors 
		
		
			 Aureos East Africa Fund (2003) 40.0 7 80 
			 Aureos West Africa Fund (2003) 50.0 6 69 
			 Aureos Southern Africa Fund (2003) 50.0 4 70 
			 Aureos Central America Fund (2002) 36.3 4 73 
			 Acacia Fund (Kenya) 19.6 7 75 
			 Ayojana Fund (Sri Lanka) 6.0 1 50 
			 Zambia Venture Capital Fund 12.5 4 80 
			 Ghana Venture Capital Fund 5.8 4 66 
			 Takura Ventures, Zimbabwe 6.9 3 69 
			 Indian Ocean Regional Fund 12.5 3 61 
			 Mauritius Venture Capital Fund 7.5 3 80 
			 Fedha Fund, Tanzania 11.9 5 69 
			 Mozambique Investment Company 5.3 6 74 
			 Tanzania Venture Capital Fund 7.6 5 67 
			 Kula Fund, Pacific 16.9 5 68 
			 NDB Venture Investments (Portfolio A), Sri Lanka 4.7 1 100 
			 NDB Venture Investments (Portfolio B), Sri Lanka 6.0 1 50 
			 Central American Investment Facility 26.4 5 62

CDC

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether there are plans to develop CDC/Actis Capital funds strictly devoted to the agribusiness sector.

Hilary Benn: There are no proposals currently under discussion between CDC and Actis for a fund or funds strictly devoted to the agribusiness sector. However, there is scope for agribusiness investment within all of the regional funds currently managed by Actis.

HEALTH

Acute Stroke Care

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what targeted funding Chesterfield and North Derbyshire Royal Hospital NHS Trust has received for the provision of acute stroke care; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The information requested is not collected centrally. Allocations of funding for particular treatments are matters for the local primary care trust.

Chiropody

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice he gives to primary care trusts concerning the length of time a patient should wait between regular chiropody appointments.

John Hutton: No advice has been given. This is a matter for clinicians to address at a local level.

Cleaning Contracts

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list hospitals in England whose primary cleaning contract is performed by in-house staff.

John Hutton: The information requested has been placed in the Library. The data provided was collected during the 2003–04 patient environment action team (PEAT) programme. It lists 706 hospital sites where it was reported that cleaning was undertaken by in-house staff. Some sites reported that the responsibility for cleaning was split between in-house staff and contract cleaners and these sites are not listed as we do not hold information centrally on which is the primary contract.
	The 2003–04 PEAT programme ran from December 2003 to May 2004. The arrangements for cleaning in hospitals are a matter for local managers and it is possible that some of the information provided has since changed.

Cleaning Contracts

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made on the effects on costs of cleaning contracts to (a) hospitals in England and (b) Worthing and Southlands Hospitals Trust of rises in (i) national insurance contributions and (ii) the minimum wage.

John Hutton: Information is not routinely collected or held centrally on the pay element of the costs of cleaning contracts awarded to either national health service teams or external contractors.

Clinical Excellence Awards

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost to the Department of (a) clinical excellence awards and (b) higher level clinical excellence awards in the last year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: This is the first year of the clinical excellence awards scheme and it is not yet known how much the Department will be spending on the awards. The advisory committee on clinical excellence awards will ratify the decisions on new awards at the forthcoming meeting in October.
	Last year, 2003–04, was the final year of the distinction awards scheme and the total spent by the Department on new and existing national distinction awards was £139,673,000.

Correspondence

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Torbay of 26 August regarding NHS work permits.

John Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Citizenship and Immigration at the Home Office (Mr. Browne) on 11 October 2004, Official Report, column 165W.

Council of Ministers

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a written ministerial statement outlining the key points on the agenda for each of the Council of Ministers' meetings at which his Department is represented in advance of each meeting.

John Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Straw) on 13 September 2004, Official Report, column 1451W.

Egg Freezing

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the hospital trusts which do not offer an egg freezing service to women who have a radical hysterectomy following cervical cancer.

Melanie Johnson: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Haemodialysis (Jersey)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients received funding from the NHS for haemodialysis treatment in Jersey in (a) 2003–04 and (b) 2002–03.

John Hutton: This information is not collected centrally. The administrative arrangements which support the Health Service Convention between the United Kingdom and the Channel Islands explicitly exclude the provision of maintenance renal dialysis treatment free of charge for temporary visitors.
	Primary care trusts in England may, however, pay for treatment abroad for UK residents, but the guidelines for assumption of the costs of such treatment normally exclude holiday haemodialysis.

Healthcare Commission

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of running the Healthcare Commission in the last year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: The Healthcare Commission began operating in April 2004. The budgeted expenditure for 2004–05 is £75.5 million, funded by £4 million from private and voluntary healthcare fees and £71.5 million grant in aid.

Healthcare Commission

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the responsibilities of the Healthcare Commission are.

John Hutton: The Healthcare Commission is the independent healthcare inspectorate for England. Its functions are set out in the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003.

Healthcare Commission

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reviews have been carried out by the Healthcare Commission since its inception.

John Hutton: I understand from the Healthcare Commission that it has published:
	33 clinical governance reviews of national health service trusts—mental health and primary care;
	19 local reports on the implementation of the coronary heart disease national service framework;
	one investigation;
	34 inspection reports on private and voluntary providers.

Hepatitis C

Richard Page: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to assess the prevalence of hepatitis C in the UK population.

Melanie Johnson: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 11 October 2004, Official Report, column 144W.
	The prevalence of hepatitis C in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for the respective devolved administrations.

Hospital Closures

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) community hospitals and (b) disabled units in England and Wales have closed since 1997.

John Hutton: Information on hospital closures, including specialist units, ceased to be collected in 1991 following the introduction of the national health service internal market and NHS trusts.

Life Expectancy

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 9 September 2004, Official Report, column 1354W, on life expectancy, what the baseline is for progress against the detailed target for life expectancy; and what progress has been made towards meeting the target.

Melanie Johnson: The detailed life expectancy target is:
	"Starting with local authorities, by 2010 to reduce by at least 10 per cent. the gap between the fifth of areas with the "worst health and deprivation indicators' and the population as a whole."
	The baseline is the average life expectancy at birth, for males and females separately, for the three years 1995, 1996 and 1997, for the group of local authority (LA) areas identified as having the "worst health and deprivation indicators". This group of areas is identified as the LAs that are in the worst quintile for at least three of the following variables:
	male life expectancy at birth;
	female life expectancy at birth;
	cancer mortality in under 75s;
	circulatory disease mortality in under 75s;
	deprivation, as measured by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's index of multiple deprivation 2004, average ward scores.
	We are awaiting publication of the revised data for these variables and will be able to report on progress against the target on a robust basis following publication of these data.

Malaria (Malavane)

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make Malavane available on the NHS as an anti-malaria treatment; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: There is no drug called Malavane. The anti-malarial drug Malarone is not available on the national health service. Regulation 24, Schedule 5(I) of the national health services (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2004, states that general practitioners can charge patients for
	"prescribing or providing drugs or medicines for malaria chemoprophylaxis".

National Service Framework for Older People

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding has been allocated to (a) primary care trusts and (b) strategic health authorities for the implementation of Standard Five of the National Service Framework for Older People; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: We do not allocate resources specifically for implementing the national service framework for older people or the development of particular services, such as stroke services. This allows local national health service commissioners and providers to plan and deliver services according to the needs of the local population.
	For the period 2003–04 to 2007–08, expenditure on the NHS in England will increase on average by 7.2 per cent., a year over and above inflation. Older people, the biggest users of the NHS, will be among the principal beneficiaries.

NHS Bureaucracy

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost to the NHS of all central returns of information and statistics to (a) the Department of Health and (b) the Department's arm's length bodies in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Melanie Johnson: To discharge public accountability for the about £69.4 billion spent on the national health service in 2004–05, the Department will require certain information and statistics. By the end of the year, it will take the equivalent of about 400 NHS administrative and clerical staff, out of a total 1.3 million NHS staff, to provide this information to the Department. This represents a significant reduction in the burden as a result of improving the systems for collecting information.
	Similar information is not available in respect of the Department's arm's length bodies but, as was announced in July, the number of these bodies is being reduced and arrangements are being put in place to reduce their capacity to impose demands on the NHS frontline.

NHS Cleaning

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on cleaning its (a) premises and (b) equipment in the latest year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: In 2002–03, the national health service spent a total of £460 million on domestic cleaning services. The figure includes pay and non-pay costs, for example, the cost of contract staff, fees, materials, equipment provision and uniform costs. Information on the amount spent on cleaning premises and equipment is not collected separately.

NHS Contracts (Auctions)

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what percentage of auctions for contracting work in the NHS have been cancelled owing to lack of significant bidders;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the use of auctions for contracting work in the NHS;
	(3)  how many eAuctions have been undertaken in the NHS in each of the last two years. [R]

John Hutton: No eAuctions undertaken by the National Health Service Purchasing and Supply Agency (NHS PASA) have been cancelled due to lack of supplier participation.
	NHS PASA undertook a pilot study of eAuctions during 2003–04, in which 13 eAuction events were completed. A report on our assessment of this pilot is available on the NHS PASA website.
	There is no central record of eAuction events undertaken by NHS organisations. NHS PASA itself undertook one eAuction event during 2002–03 and 13 eAuction events during 2003–04.

NHS Nurses

David Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses left the NHS in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally. The Department's non-medical workforce census collects information on the number of nurses employed in the national health service each year; consecutive years' data therefore show the net change in the workforce, taking account of leavers and joiners.
	The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) publishes an annual statistical report which includes information about the number of nurses and midwives leaving the register. This data can be found on the NMC website at www.nmc-uk.org.uk.
	Between September 1997 and March 2004, there has been a net increase in the number of nurses employed in the NHS of 77,500. The Government have met and exceeded the NHS Plan and Manifesto targets for increasing the nursing workforce and has also exceeded the expectation for 35,000 more nurses by 2008. The Government acknowledge that there are still more staff needed in these areas and we shall focus on increasing training places, retaining nursing staff and filling existing vacancies.

Primary Care Trusts

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to reduce the number of primary care trusts.

John Hutton: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health, presently has no plans to reduce the number of primary care trusts.

Reconfiguration Service Reviews

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reconfiguration service reviews have been undertaken by Sir Ara Darzi, broken down by (a) date and (b) services covered.

John Hutton: holding answer 16 September 2004
	Professor Sir Ara Darzi has undertaken or is undertaking the following service reviews:
	
		
			 Review Date Services covered 
		
		
			 Kidderminster hospital June-July 2001 Elective surgery 
			 Worcestershire, County Durham and Darlington December 2001–  February 2002 All acute services 
			 Hartlepool hospital Under way All acute services

Residential Care

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has paid towards nursing costs for those in residential care in the past 12 months; and what proportion this represents of the total amount spent on residential care from all sources.

Stephen Ladyman: The total amount spent in 2002–03, the latest year for which figures are available, by councils and primary care trusts (PCTs) in providing nursing care for adults was £1.95 billion. In that year, PCTs were allocated £220 million to meet the assessed nursing needs of people in care homes providing nursing care. This was to cover the nursing care costs of people who met the full cost of their care. The corresponding costs for people financially supported by councils is not separately identifiable. Thus, a valid comparison cannot be made.
	In 2003–04, PCTs became responsible for the nursing care costs of all residents in homes providing nursing care. PCTs were allocated £584 million for this purpose. The total amount spent by councils and PCTs in that year is not yet available to make a comparison.
	We would expect this to be about 25 to 30 per cent. of the amount spent on residential care. The balance comprises principally the costs of personal care provided to residents and their board and lodging costs.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of diagnosed sexually transmitted diseases there were in each primary care trust in London in each year since 1997.

Melanie Johnson: The numbers of cases of diagnosed sexually transmitted diseases for each primary care trust in London for each year since 1997 are shown in the table.
	
		Diagnoses of sexually transmitted diseases by primary care trust (PCT). London: 1997–2003 1
		
			 Primary care trust 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham PCT 2,454 2,797 3,020 2,764 2,457 3,461 3,292 
			 Barnet PCT(5) 1,542 1,591 1,546 1,993 2,001 1,899 923 
			 Brent PCT 8,753 8,851 8,724 9,258 9,479 10,156 10,113 
			 Bromley PCT 1,386 1,899 2,287 2,468 3,296 3,683 3,575 
			 Camden PCT 15,714 17,117 17,478 18,750 20,962 22,257 26,987 
			 City and Hackney PCT(5) 14,998 16,595 16,601 16,169 19,171 22,673 21,072 
			 Croydon PCT 4,089 5,546 5,707 6,968 7,805 7,995 7,587 
			 Ealing PCT 1,514 585 1,518 1,687 2,062 2,751 1,832 
			 Enfield PCT 581 1,513 1,168 1,481 1,957 2,129 1,659 
			 Greenwich PCT 4,361 4,314 4,901 6,012 5,170 5,385 6,607 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 7,838 7,889 8,281 9,556 9,992 4,996 5,723 
			 Haringey PCT 5,029 5,229 5,568 6,344 7,183 6,617 6,379 
			 Hillingdon PCT 1,931 2,387 3,038 3,096 4,131 4,000 3,110 
			 Hounslow PCT 3,270 3,185 3,029 4,101 4,637 5,861 6,473 
			 Islington PCT 5,339 5,552 6,259 5,781 5,309 4,988 6,186 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 11,995 11,636 11,040 13,149 13,301 11,739 12,243 
			 Kingston PCT 1,926 2,443 2,646 3,129 3,474 3,872 4,481 
			 Lambeth PCT 17,865 19,998 21,327 19,971 19,754 22,003 22,209 
			 Lewisham PCT(6) 412 353 346 482 21 — — 
			 Newham PCT 8,948 9,033 11,214 11,023 12,769 13,200 15,236 
			 Southwark PCT 16,481 17,073 15,232 13,836 16,699 19,618 19,249 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 10,870 9,110 11,569 13,464 14,229 16,589 17,784 
			 Walthamstow, Leyton and Leytonstone PCT 1,157 1,355 1,726 1,713 2,311 2,433 2,988 
			 Wandsworth PCT 2,629 2,712 3,072 3,004 3,519 4,151 4,199 
			 Westminster PCT 18,639 21,490 21,359 20,503 20,870 18,462 19,657 
		
	
	(4) Overall figures may be lower than stated for the London region in the annual report because the data presented here have not been imputed.
	2 One clinic in each of these PCTs did not submit all the KC60 returns for 2003.
	3 The Alexis Clinic closed in June 2001. No GUM clinics currently open in this PCT.

Short Gestation Births

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were born at under 24 weeks gestation in the last two years for which figures are available; how many were still alive one year later; how many were handicapped; and from what handicaps they suffered.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department estimates that 450 babies were born from 400 deliveries before 24 weeks gestation in 2001–02. In 2002–03, about 600 babies were born from around 650 similar deliveries. Deliveries at low gestational age are often, but not always, precursors to disability. We do not have any information on the number of babies born in the most recent years who have physical or sensory impairments or learning difficulties. Neither do we know how many of those babies were still alive a year after birth. However, results of a United Kingdom and Ireland longitudinal study conducted at Nottingham University based on babies born before 26 weeks in the nine months from March to December 1995 is available at http://www.nottingham. ac.uk/human-development/EPICure/study2.htm .

Social Services Expenditure

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average expenditure per head of population on (a) children and (b) older people was by each social services department in the last year for which figures are available.

Melanie Johnson: The table shows the average gross expenditure per head of population on children and older people for each social services department in England in 2002–03, the latest year for which data are available.
	
		Gross expenditure per capita on older people and children by social services departments 2002–03 £
		
			  Older people 1 aged 65 and over Children 1 aged under 18 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 1,344 422 
			 Barnet 986 403 
			 Barnsley 904 302 
			 Bath and North East Somerset UA 766 268 
			 Bedfordshire 730 275 
			 Bexley 859 278 
			 Birmingham 997 380 
			 Blackburn with Darwen UA 1,154 380 
			 Blackpool UA 918 364 
			 Bolton 960 252 
			 Bournemouth UA 815 435 
			 Bracknell Forest UA 906 243 
			 Bradford 1,076 329 
			 Brent 1,063 464 
			 Brighton and Hove UA 1,065 505 
			 Bristol UA 1,193 416 
			 Bromley 838 326 
			 Buckinghamshire 765 157 
			 Bury 998 263 
			 Calderdale 938 288 
			 Cambridgeshire 763 200 
			 Camden 1,839 709 
			 Cheshire 843 206 
			 City of London 2,434 1,651 
			 Cornwall 675 262 
			 Coventry 1,032 413 
			 Croydon 1,043 329 
			 Cumbria 797 245 
			 Darlington UA 719 337 
			 Derby UA 924 310 
			 Derbyshire 796 219 
			 Devon 712 233 
			 Doncaster 875 299 
			 Dorset 489 240 
			 Dudley 799 229 
			 Durham 1,022 277 
			 Ealing 1,076 490 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire UA 741 173 
			 East Sussex 673 268 
			 Enfield 937 363 
			 Essex 790 251 
			 Gateshead 1,181 356 
			 Gloucestershire 643 213 
			 Greenwich 1,215 648 
			 Hackney 1,557 606 
			 Halton UA 963 316 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 1,677 767 
			 Hampshire 601 182 
			 Haringey 1,372 680 
			 Harrow 896 309 
			 Hartlepool UA 1,106 335 
			 Havering 732 291 
			 Herefordshire UA 563 246 
			 Hertfordshire 709 276 
			 Hillingdon 872 404 
			 Hounslow 1,078 459 
			 Isle of Wight UA 795 253 
			 Isles of Stilly 1,120 172 
			 Islington 1,855 949 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 1,290 704 
			 Kent 759 213 
			 Kingston upon Hull UA 1,197 544 
			 Kingston upon Thames 1,099 280 
			 Kirklees 1,020 258 
			 Knowsley 991 354 
			 Lambeth 1,429 773 
			 Lancashire 864 230 
			 Leeds 969 393 
			 Leicester U A 1,055 411 
			 Leicestershire 680 158 
			 Lewisham 1,529 707 
			 Lincolnshire 693 217 
			 Liverpool 1,158 519 
			 Luton UA 926 320 
			 Manchester 1,336 676 
			 Medway Towns UA 873 212 
			 Merton 958 350 
			 Middlesbrough UA 1,023 395 
			 Milton Keynes UA 1,033 297 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 1,218 482 
			 Newham 1,452 544 
			 Norfolk 762 262 
			 North East Lincolnshire UA 912 376 
			 North Lincolnshire UA 860 351 
			 North Somerset UA 727 236 
			 North Tyneside 1,085 478 
			 North Yorkshire 712 192 
			 Northamptonshire 726 235 
			 Northumberland 1,037 311 
			 Nottingham UA 1,107 567 
			 Nottinghamshire 787 254 
			 Oldham 675 273 
			 Oxfordshire 749 187 
			 Peterborough UA 949 520 
			 Plymouth UA 943 437 
			 Poole UA 624 294 
			 Portsmouth UA 1,078 335 
			 Reading UA 892 386 
			 Redbridge 943 246 
			 Redcar and Cleveland UA 705 284 
			 Richmond upon Thames 1,114 255 
			 Rochdale 1,082 273 
			 Rotherham 1,029 271 
			 Rutland U A 693 110 
			 Salford 1,063 507 
			 Sandwell 1,095 368 
			 Sefton 946 286 
			 Sheffield 1,149 369 
			 Shropshire 719 185 
			 Slough U A 851 363 
			 Solihull 649 295 
			 Somerset 665 201 
			 South Gloucestershire UA 769 164 
			 South Tyneside 1,183 429 
			 Southampton UA 1,002 396 
			 Southend-on-Sea UA 832 395 
			 Southwark 1,646 818 
			 St. Helens 1,037 276 
			 Staffordshire 774 210 
			 Stockport 840 290 
			 Stockton on Tees 912 259 
			 Stoke-on-Trent UA 990 361 
			 Suffolk 748 221 
			 Sunderland 1,182 444 
			 Surrey 613 219 
			 Sutton 944 266 
			 Swindon UA 751 252 
			 Tameside 1,116 349 
			 Telford and the Wrekin UA 862 281 
			 Thurrock UA 713 274 
			 Torbay UA 995 415 
			 Tower Hamlets 2,106 706 
			 Trafford 844 243 
			 Wakefield 941 278 
			 Walsall 993 496 
			 Waltham Forest 1,114 426 
			 Wandsworth 1,430 626 
			 Warrington UA 967 177 
			 Warwickshire 677 224 
			 West Berkshire UA 707 282 
			 West Sussex 706 234 
			 Westminster 1,554 993 
			 Wigan 886 278 
			 Wiltshire 589 181 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead UA 724 173 
			 Wirral 935 329 
			 Wokingham UA 698 196 
			 Wolverhampton 1,070 368 
			 Worcestershire 675 231 
			 York UA 763 243 
			 England 869 315 
		
	
	UA = Unitary authority.
	(5) The population figures used to calculate the per capita expenditure are those for the same age groups as the headings in the table.
	Sources:
	Expenditure data, form PSS EX1;
	Population data, mid 2002 Office for National Statistics estimates.

Vegan Food Products

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to encourage the food industry to use the Vegan Society's sunflower logo on food products complying with vegan standards; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: The Vegan Society's sunflower logo is a registered trademark used for commercial purposes and as such, it is not appropriate for the Government to encourage its use.

Working Time Directive

Archie Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received about the costs of remunerating medical staff who have signed a formal opt-out from the Working Time Directive.

John Hutton: I am not aware of any such representations.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Pensions

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the procedures for dealing with persons applying or the enhanced or accelerated pension administered by the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers Superannuation Committee have been revised in the past five years.

Angela Smith: The pension scheme administered by the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers' Superannuation Committee does not make provision for an accelerated or an enhanced pension arrangement. The Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002, Part III, which came into operation on 1 February 2003, did, however, make provision for optional additional benefits. One of which was to allow employing authorities to increase total membership (the number of years which count for pension purposes) of members leaving employment at or after 50. It is the responsibility of each employing authority to formulate and review their policy in respect of Part III of those Regulations.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Benefits (York)

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of (a) men, (b) women and (c) men and women were (i) unemployed and claiming benefits, (ii) long-term unemployed, (iii) youths unemployed and (iv) claiming incapacity benefit or predecessor invalidity benefits in (A) the UK, (B) England, (C) Yorkshire and the Humber, (D) City of York Council area and (E) City of York and York parliamentary constituency in each year since 1979.

Jane Kennedy: The available information has been placed in the Library.

Civil Service (Job Losses)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which services within his Department will be (a) affected by and (b) subject to job losses consequent on the cuts in the civil service announced in the Spending Review.

Maria Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 16 September 2004, Official Report, column 1659W

Consultants

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on (a) headhunters and recruitment consultants and (b) management consultants in (i) 1996–97 and (ii) the latest year for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: DWP was formed in June 2001 from the former Department of Social Security (DSS) and parts of the former Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) including the Employment Service (ES). Consultancy procurement prior to the formation of DWP was the responsibility of the individual Agencies within DSS and DfES. The information requested was not collated centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	During 2003–04, DWP spent £0.71 million on headhunters and recruitment consultants. During 2002–03, the latest year for which figures are available, expenditure on management consultancy was £47.57 million.

Headed Notepaper

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total cost of printing departmental headed notepaper was in (a) 1996–97 and (b) the latest year for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: In 2003–04, the latest year available, the Department for Work and Pensions spent £425,219 on headed notepaper. Headed notepaper is used for most external communications with our customers, who include most of the UK population, our suppliers and business contacts. Because the Department was formed in 2001 there are no comparable figures for 1996–07. Figures for 1996–07 for the Department's predecessor organisations, principally the Department of Social Security and the Employment Service agency are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

LandSecurities Trillium

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the projected annual costs of his Department's contract payments to LandSecurities Trillium are.

Maria Eagle: The total projected contract payment to LandSecurities Trillium for 2004–05 is £482.3 million.

Pension Payment Arrangements

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners have opted for a (a) Post Office and (b) bank or building society account for the receipt of pension payments; and how many have still to make their preference known.

Chris Pond: holding answer 13 October 2004
	As at 20 August we had written to almost 5.4 million pensioners. Almost 2 million have provided their bank account details, and almost 2.5 million have requested a Post Office card account.
	Those customers who have not yet provided their account details will be contacted again to discuss their options, unless they have already advised the Department that they genuinely cannot open or manage an account.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Green Ministers

John Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many meetings of the Ministerial Sub-Committee of Green Ministers were attended by the Department's Green Minister in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04.

Estelle Morris: According to Cabinet Committee protocol, I can confirm only that I have represented the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on this committee since July 2003.

Television Licences

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will estimate the percentage of households in each of Northern Ireland's constituencies in possession of a valid television licence.

Estelle Morris: As explained in my reply to the hon. Member on 11 October 2004, Official Report, column 69W, TV Licensing do not record the numbers of licences issued by parliamentary constituency. It is therefore not possible to estimate reliably the percentage of households in each constituency in possession of a television licence.

Television Licences

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what rights the television licensing authorities have to make pre-emptive calls upon the residents of newly built properties when there is no clarity as to whether they yet own a television; and if she will investigate correspondence issued by the authority with regard to this practice.

Estelle Morris: The BBC, as licensing authority, and its agent, TV Licensing, have the same rights and responsibilities in relation to newly built properties as in respect of any other property. Parliament has entrusted the administration of the television licensing system to the BBC and the Government have no power to intervene in operational matters of this kind. However, the BBC has explained that TV Licensing receives regular updates of the Postal Address File maintained by the Post Office. This information is checked against licensing data and, if an unlicensed property is identified, inquiries are made first by letter, then by telephone and if necessary by a home visit to establish if a television licence is required.

Television Licences

David Marshall: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many households in the city of Glasgow are in receipt of the free television licence for over-75s.

Estelle Morris: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, 2001 Census data indicate that there are approximately 44,400 people aged 75 or over living in Glasgow.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bovine TB

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of incidence of bovine tuberculosis in deer; and how much her Department has spent on research into this in each of the past 10 years.

Ben Bradshaw: Bovine tuberculosis (TB) has been confirmed in five of the six established wild and feral species of deer in GB.
	Defra has carried out one research project in the last 10 years which has included work on isolating TB in deer and other mammalian wildlife species (excluding badgers). The wildlife survey, carried out by the Central Science Laboratory (CSL) in the South West of England, confirmed infection in four deer species—roe deer (1.0 per cent. of 885 samples), red deer (1.0 per cent. of 196 samples), fallow deer (4.4 per cent. of 504 samples) and muntjac (5.2 per cent. of 58 samples). The prevalence of infection was significantly higher in adult fallow and roe deer. The final report of the CSL research was published on the Defra website in July and can be viewed at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/science/project data/ DocumentLibrary/SE3010/SE3010 1628 FRP.doc
	A breakdown of the costs for the Central Science Laboratory research are given in the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Cost 
		
		
			 1999–2000 104,418 
			 2000–01 162,237 
			 2001–02 195,822 
			 2002–03 182,460 
			 2003–04 117,686 
			 Total 762,623 
		
	
	Note:
	The CSL survey looked at TB in a number of mammalian wildlife species and did not focus specifically on deer.
	While isolations of Mycobacterium bovis (the causative organism of bovine TB) from deer are a concern it is not clear what, if any, contribution any of the species examined in the study make to the problem of TB in cattle. We are currently considering the requirements for our future research programme.

Foot and Mouth Vaccine

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many doses of foot and mouth vaccine are immediately available for the type O virus which occurred in 2001.

Ben Bradshaw: Article 79.4 of Council Directive 2003/85/EEC on Community measures for the control of foot and mouth disease states that
	"The information on quantities and subtypes of antigens or authorised vaccines stored in the national antigen and vaccine bank shall be treated as classified information and in particular shall not be published."

Student Agricultural Workers Scheme

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the decision to exempt some non-EU students from national insurance contributions as part of the student agricultural workers scheme.

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.
	National insurance contributions fall within the remit of the Inland Revenue and I am replying as the Minister responsible. Regulation 145(3) of the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/1004), which dates back to 1948, allows certain foreign students employed in the UK during their vacations to be exempt from NICs for the first 52 weeks of their employment. It does not apply to students from within the EU or countries with which the UK has a Reciprocal Agreement (RA) or Double Contribution Convention (DCC).

HOME DEPARTMENT

Airwave

Jim Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effect on the resilience of the critical national infrastructure of a second independent national emergency service communications network operating in parallel to Airwave.

Caroline Flint: We are working with the Association of Chief Police Officers, the Association of Police Authorities, the Police Information Technology Organisation and commercial partners to increase further the resilience of Airwave. A single, resilient network has very significant cost and technical advantages over the building and operation of two independent networks.

Animal Welfare

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he was informed (a) of the death of three primates en route to Huntingdon in 1998 and (b) that the crates in which they were carried broke International Air Transport Association regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The animals were found dead on arrival at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris from the Philippines on 5 August 1998. Their deaths were reported to Home Office Ministers on 28 August 1998. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the department responsible at that time for the enforcement of regulations governing the transportation of animals to the United Kingdom, was also informed.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many anti-social behaviour orders have been issued in the Borough of Hackney; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: Anti-Social behaviour orders (ASBOs) have been available to the courts since 1 April 1999. From commencement, up to 31 March 2004 (latest available), the Home Office has been notified of three ASBOs issued where restrictions imposed are specific to the Borough of Hackney.

Asylum Seekers

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people who have successfully claimed asylum in the last three years are paying national insurance contributions.

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested is not available.

Great Gorilla Run

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of policing the Great Gorilla Run in London on 19 September was.

Hazel Blears: The Commissioners of Police for the City of London and for the Metropolis inform me that no additional policing costs were incurred for this charity event.
	The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund organised the event and provided the majority of stewards.

Police

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the Government are doing to improve trust of the police among black people.

Hazel Blears: Citizen-focused policing, a key strand of the police reform programme, is about improving the way police forces understand, communicate with and engage with their communities. Race and diversity are a key element of this.
	Recent national initiatives aimed at improving public confidence in the police are the Police Race and Diversity Learning and Development Programme, which aims to help officers meet the individual needs of diverse communities, and the work of the Stop and Search Action Team which aims to increase the confidence that the black and minority ethnic (BME) community has in the way the police use the stop and search power and, where appropriate reduce disproportionality.

Police

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women police officers in the Metropolitan Police force come from a minority ethnic background.

Hazel Blears: I refer my hon. Friend to the recently published Home Office Statistical Bulletin on Police Service Strength 31 March 2004.

Police

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to ensure that police forces that choose not to employ community support officers do not lose out in the distribution of the Neighbourhood Policing Fund.

Hazel Blears: The aim of the Neighbourhood Policing Fund (NPF) is to support the development of local policing teams to work with residents on policing priorities in their area. The NPF will enable forces to recruit 24,000 Community Support Officers (CSOs) by April 2008.
	£50 million from the NPF is to be allocated to police forces in 2004–05 in to fund the salaries of new CSOs. We are expecting all 43 forces England and Wales to submit bids for funding. We will be discussing with police authorities and forces the terms of funding in subsequent years.

Police Complaints Commission

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) complaints have been received and (b) investigations were carried out by the office of the Police Complaints Commission for England and Wales in each of the last four years.

Hazel Blears: It is assumed that the question refers to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) which was established under the Police Reform Act 2002 and commenced operations on 1 April 2004. It replaced the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) which ceased operations on 31 March 2004.
	A breakdown of the complaints for the years 1999–2000 to 2002–2003 are as follows.
	
		
			  Total complaints received by police Complaints referred to PCA Complaints accepted for investigation Voluntary referrals of non-complaint matters received Voluntary referrals accepted by PCA 
		
		
			 2002–03 15,248 898 447 181 133 
			 2001–02 16,654 937 622 177 162 
			 2000–01 18,911 946 586 125 117 
			 1999–00 21,000 1,192 822 144 139 
		
	
	The powers available to the IPCC are greater than those that were available to the PCA. It can receive complaints directly rather than just by referral. It also has powers to independently investigate complaints in certain circumstances.

Prisons

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time taken for a prisoner on the CARATS or other drug programmes to access drug treatment on leaving prison is.

Caroline Flint: Information is not available in the format requested.
	The National Treatment Agency (NTA) report that by July 2004 in the majority of Drug Action Teams (DATs), there was an average waiting time of between one and a half to three and a half weeks for all types of treatment for all drug users, both those leaving prison and those entering treatment from the community. This is compared to between three to eight weeks in December 2002. The NTA is working with DATs to ensure waiting times continue to drop.
	The NTA report that waiting times in the 47 DATs where the Drug Interventions Programme (formally known as CJIP) is being delivered intensively are lower than non-Drug Interventions Programme areas.

Stop and Search Powers

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were stopped and searched in Lechlade near Fairford on 22 March 2003 using powers under section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

Caroline Flint: I understand from Gloucestershire Police that 25 people were stopped and searched in Lechlade near Fairford on 22 March 2003 using powers under section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994.

Travellers

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he has given to police authorities on dealing with travellers' (a) unwanted access to (i) privately owned and (ii) publicly owned sites and (b) removal from (i) privately and (ii) publicly owned sites; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: In February 2004, the Home Office and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) published operational guidance for the police and local authorities on managing unauthorised camping. The guidance is available on the ODPM website.

UN Convention Against Corruption

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what timescale he has for introducing the (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation that is required in order for the UK to be able to ratify the UN Convention Against Corruption.

Caroline Flint: The Government will seek to bring forward the required legislation at the earliest suitable opportunity. In addition to primary legislation to comply with Article 55 on the forfeiture of the instrumentalities of crime, secondary legislation will be required to comply with Article 52, on the prevention and detection of transfers of the proceeds of crime, and Article 53 of the Convention, on the confiscation and repatriation of assets. Measures dealing with the requirements of Article 52 are likely to be included in the EU Third Money Laundering Directive. Our current expectation is that negotiations on the Directive will be completed by the first part of next year and we would seek to implement it in the UK through secondary legislation as soon as we reasonably could thereafter.
	Measures dealing with the requirements of Article 53 will be brought forward under Part 11 of the Proceeds of Crime (POCA) Act 2002.

Violent Crime

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the level of violent crime.

Hazel Blears: According to figures from the British Crime Survey (BCS), which are the most reliable indicator of long-term trends in violence in England and Wales, there were an estimated 2.7 million violent incidents against adults in 2003–04. Levels of violent crime are now stable and are 26 per cent. down from 1997. The fear of violent crime has also fallen steadily since 1998, with the proportion of adults with a high level of concern about violent crime down from 21 per cent. in 2002–03 to 16 per cent. in 2003–04.
	Half of all violent incidents reported to the BCS in 2003–04 did not result in injury to the victim. However, this does not mean that public concern about violent crime is unjustified or that the ordeal of victims is not traumatic, even if injury has not occurred.
	Recorded violent crime has risen since 1997, reaching 1.1 million incidents in 2003–04, but these data are affected by changes in reporting and recording practices. The Home Office Counting Rules for Recorded Crime were amended in 1998 to include a large number of offences particularly in the less serious violence categories. The introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) in April 2002 also resulted in an increase in recorded crime. The effect for violent crime was estimated to be an increase of 20 per cent.
	In addition, more violent crimes are being recorded by the police as public tolerance of violence in the family or by acquaintances diminishes. Along with a more proactive response from the police, more crimes that would have previously been unreported are now recorded in the official figures.

Violent Crime (Northampton)

Tony Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the level of violent crime in Northampton was in each year since 1997.

Hazel Blears: Northampton is a Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) area. Data at CDRP level has only been collected from 1999–2000 onwards. Violent crime comprises violence against the person, sexual offences and robbery. In 2003–04, at least 52 per cent. of all recorded violence against the person involved no injury.
	The available information are given in the tables.
	
		Violent crime recorded by the police in Northampton1999–2000 to 2001–02 1
		
			 Period Number of offences 
		
		
			 1999–2000 2,525 
			 2000–01 2,656 
			 2001–02 2,927 
		
	
	(6) The date in this table is prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years.
	
		Violent crime recorded by the police in Northampton2002–03 to 2003–04 1
		
			 Period Number of offences 
		
		
			 2002–03 4,539 
			 2003–04 5,451 
		
	
	(7) The date in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.
	The British Crime Survey (BCS) also provides data on the level of violent crime in England and Wales. However, due to the variability of specific offence figures at police force area level, regional figures only are available. Data at regional level has been published as a rate per 10,000 adults since the 2001–02 BCS and are presented for the relevant region in the following table.
	
		Total BCS violence rate per 10,000 adults for theEast Midlands Region
		
			  BCS 
		
		
			 2001–02 621 
			 2002–03 578 
			 2003–04 600 
		
	
	Note:
	The apparent difference between rates in 2002–03 and in 2003–04 is not statistically significant
	Source:
	2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04 BCS interviews.
	Half of all violent incidents reported to the BCS during 2003–04 did not result in injury to the victim. However, this does not mean that public concern about violent crime is unjustified or that the ordeal of victims is not traumatic, even if injury has not occurred.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Parliamentary Data and Video Network

David Drew: To ask the Chairman of the Information Committee what evaluation has been carried out of the effectiveness of the work undertaken by the Parliamentary Data and Video Network from a system based around Citrix to one using broadband for remote users.

Robert Key: The majority of users are content with the Virtual Private Network (VPN) service, which in time will replace Citrix for remote access. VPN technology, which uses broadband connections, was piloted before it was launched. Feedback from the pilot was evaluated and further feedback was invited once the service had been rolled out. The Parliamentary Communications Directorate (PCD) has investigated all negative feedback and has taken steps to ensure that the problems identified have been resolved. The performance of the VPN continues to be closely monitored.

Parliamentary Data and Video Network

David Drew: To ask the Chairman of the Information Committee how many (a) complaints and (b) positive comments he has received since the system of connection to the Parliamentary Data and Video Network moved from Citrix to broadband for remote users, with particular reference to (i) access problems, (ii) speed and (iii) protection from spam.

Robert Key: Since the introduction of the Virtual Private Network (VPN) I have received eight letters commenting on the service. Most of the letters welcome the move to broadband but also detail individual complaints. Most of the complaints relate to service issues rather than to access, speed or unsolicited e-mail. Three of the letters related to access problems in areas of the country where broadband was unavailable.
	I am aware that the Parliamentary Communications Directorate has recently received complaints about the speed of the VPN. Every effort is being made to resolve this issue, and the Information Committee continues to monitor it closely.

Parliamentary Data and Video Network

David Drew: To ask the Chairman of the Information Committee how many hon. Members (a) use and (b) do not use the Parliamentary Data and Video Network.

Robert Key: There are currently 2,253 accounts set up for Members and their staff. 1,126 of these have been used at least once. It is not possible to provide separate figures for use by Members as it is not clear how many Members allow access to their accounts by their staff.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Parliamentary Data and Video Network

David Drew: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission what the (a) budget and (b) cost of the Parliamentary Data and Video Network was in each of the last five years; and how many users had access to the systems in each of those years (i) on the parliamentary estate and (ii) as remote users.

Archy Kirkwood: The current costs, budget, and number of accounts on the Parliamentary Network (PN) for the last five years are:
	
		
			  £000 
			  1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 PN Budget 1,425 1,399 1,688 1,664 2,135 
			 PN Expenditure 1,545 1,264 1,773 1,783 2,594 
			 Accounts at year end (approx) 3,000 4,000 5,200 5,600 6,600 
		
	
	Budget and expenditure figures for the PN for 2003–04 reflect organisational changes to the Parliamentary Communications Directorate and are not directly comparable with earlier years.
	The total number of accounts has been given because the number of individual users is not recorded. Of the total network accounts, around 2,230 are registered for Virtual Private Network (VPN) remote access and 2,730 for Citrix remote access. The numbers cannot simply be added because network accounts can be registered for both VPN and Citrix access.

Television Sets

Norman Baker: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission how many television sets are operationally available on the parliamentary estate; what hours they are preset to turn on and off for each day of the week (a) when the House is sitting and (b) during parliamentary recesses; what measures have been taken to conserve the energy that they use; and what energy consumption he estimates results each year from televisions being left in stand-by mode.

Archy Kirkwood: There are 1,951 television annunciators on the parliamentary estate. When the Houses are sitting the central control switches on the sets for an average of approximately 14 hours per day. On non-sitting days the central control does not activate the sets. The annunciator sets have been selected for their low energy consumption. When a set is operating it consumes 65 watts and in standby mode the consumption is 5.5 watts. The estimated annual energy cost of all the sets when in standby mode is £2,300.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Bed-and-Breakfast Accommodation (Buckinghamshire)

John Bercow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homeless households in the Buckingham constituency have been resident in bed-and-breakfast accommodation in each year since 2002; and what percentage of them claimed benefit in each year.

Keith Hill: Information is not collected at constituency level, only at local authority level. Information reported by Aylesbury Vale district council on the number of homeless households resident in bed and breakfast hotels under homelessness legislation at the end of each quarter since 2002 is given in the table. Aylesbury Vale DC comprises the entire parliamentary constituency of Buckingham, and part of Aylesbury. The number of these households claiming, or in receipt of, social security benefits is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	
		Homeless households in B&B accommodation(inc. Shared Facility Annexes): Aylesbury Vale DC
		
			  31 March 30 June 30 September 31 December 
		
		
			 2002 1 4 4 0 
			 2003 3 0 0 1 
			 2004 1 1 — — 
		
	
	Note:
	Includes households accommodated pending completion of inquiries by the local authority.
	Source:
	ODPM P1(E) housing returns (quarterly).

Canvey Island

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to ensure (a) that Canvey Island is provided with an additional access road before any further major housing or industrial development is undertaken and (b) that the East of England Development Agency invests in additional access roads in Canvey before making any expenditure on development on the Island.

Keith Hill: The need for an additional access road to Canvey Island is a matter which the local planning and transport authorities should take into account when they are considering any proposals for further major development which may be brought forward; the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) is not empowered or funded to build infrastructure.

Care Homes

Sue Doughty: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average price paid for each care home bed by the local authority in a non-local authority run home was in Surrey in each year since 1997.

Stephen Ladyman: I have been asked to reply.
	This information is not available centrally.

Gypsies

James Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the number of Gypsies of (a) English, (b) Irish and (c) Eastern European origin in England.

Keith Hill: This information is not available—at present the bi-annual Count of Gypsy and Traveller Caravans does not require local authorities to record the ethnicity of caravan dwellers.

High Hedges

Adrian Flook: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will publish the guidance to local authorities on how to implement the legislation concerning high hedges contained in the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003.

Phil Hope: Draft guidance to local authorities on dealing with complaints about high hedges under the provisions in Part 8 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 was issued on 29 March. The consultation closed on 30 June. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is now finalising the guidance and Regulations and expects the system to be fully operational around the end of 2004.

Housing (South Somerset)

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what action he is taking to improve the availability of affordable accommodation in South Somerset; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: Through the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme (ADP) the South West Housing Body has allocated the following amounts to deliver 324 Affordable Homes in South Somerset from 2003 until 2006:
	
		
			  £ 
			  
		
		
			 2003–04 1,518,626 
			 2004–05 1,300,629 
			 2005–06 4,007,790

Mobile Phone Masts

John Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he intends to publish a response to the recommendations of the All Party Mobile Group on Mobile Phone Masts published in July.

Keith Hill: The Government do not intend to publish a formal response to the recommendations in the report on mobile phone masts published by the All Party Mobile Group in July.
	The Government have welcomed the report and acknowledges the work that went into preparing the report and the expert knowledge and advice given by those who presented written and oral evidence to the Group. Accordingly, the Government have given a commitment to reviewing the Group's recommendations in taking forward Government policy on planning for telecommunications. This is happening, as evidenced by the recent publication of the consultation document "Changes to the System of Planning Fees in England" which made direct reference to the Group's work.

Planning Appeals

Greg Knight: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the current average delay is at the Planning Inspectorate in dealing with appeals; what action is being taken to reduce the backlog of cases; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: The Planning Inspectorate has been faced with a very large increase in planning appeals over the last 18 months. 22,548 planning appeals were received in 2003–04, an increase of 21.5 per cent. compared to the previous year. In the six months to 30 September 2004 there was a 23 per cent. rise in receipts of planning appeals compared to the same period in the previous year. As a result of the substantial increase in the number of cases, the Inspectorate is currently taking an average 52 weeks to arrange a site visit, and 60 weeks to arrange a hearing or inquiry. The Planning Inspectorate are taking a number of steps to reduce the backlog of cases including taking on an additional 29 consultant Inspectors, carrying out a pilot scheme to encourage appellants to go for the less resource intensive written representations rather than hearings method, working to identify and implement ways of increasing the productivity of Inspectors, reviewing how householder cases are dealt with and restructuring the Inspectorate to increase the capacity to deal with the casework. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has also provided an additional £l million to the Inspectorate this year to help them deal with the backlog.

Planning Appeals

Paul Truswell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many planning appeals relating to the Leeds Metropolitan District area have been (a) submitted, (b) upheld and (c) rejected in the last five years for which figures are available.

Keith Hill: The information requested is tabled below.
	
		Leeds city council—planning appeals
		
			  Number submitted (received) Number upheld (allowed) Number rejected (dismissed) 
		
		
			 2000–01 141 33 86 
			 2001–02 186 60 63 
			 2002–03 223 70 122 
			 2003–04 203 64 126 
			 2004–05(8) 95 27 29 
		
	
	(8) To 30 September 2004

Planning Permission

David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the numbers of campaigning and advertising signs in the countryside, with regard to the planning permission which is required; and what criteria are used to determine whether such signs constitute flyposting.

Keith Hill: Outdoor advertisements, including signs, and those displayed in campaigns in the countryside are controlled by local planning authorities. They will be lawfully displayed provided they are in accordance with the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992. Fly-posting is any printed matter designed for the purpose of advertising, announcement or direction which is affixed without authorisation to any surface.

Playing Fields and Parks

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many additional (a) playing fields and (b) parks he estimates will be required under the Government's plan for an additional 120,000 houses to be built between 2003 and 2016 in the Thames Gateway.

Keith Hill: This information is not held centrally. It has always been an important part of the planning system to co-ordinate new development with the infrastructure it demands, including green space. The plan-led system ensures that links between infrastructure and developments are properly investigated. Planning Policy Statement 12 (PPS12) requires that local planning authorities develop a strategic approach to infrastructure provision when preparing local development documents, in terms of transport, water, sewerage, waste and general community facilities.
	The Government's commitment to the provision of green space, including parks and playing fields, was laid out in Planning Policy Statement 1, which said that well designed public and green space were required as part of building sustainable communities. The Government stated in Planning Policy Guidance 17 that open space standards are best set at a local level as national standards cannot cater for local circumstances. Local authorities are expected to carry out assessments of the needs of their communities that will be used to set robust standards for the provision of all types of open space. This applies equally in the Thames Gateway as elsewhere in the country.
	The Government are encouraging the enhancement and the creation of a range of new green space within the Gateway, not just playing fields and parks. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs jointly published Creating Sustainable Communities: Greening the Gateway in January 2004, setting out the importance of green infrastructure in the Thames Gateway.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is funding a number of projects that will provide playing fields and parks within the Gateway. For example, we have awarded £18.5 million to the Craylands and Fryens development, which will include the construction of three new football pitches. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has also awarded £4.5 million for the Kent Thames Gateway Environment Programme, which will allow for the development of a new regional park in north Kent.

Regional Spatial Strategies

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the regional spatial strategies for the South East and East of England regions will be expected to identify the required level of provision for community facilities and infrastructure in respect of the Thames Gateway; and how these will reflect increased house-building in the Thames Gateway.

Keith Hill: The Thames Gateway is covered by three regional planning authorities—the Mayor of London, East of England and South East England. These three authorities have issued collectively an Interregional Planning Statement, published in August 2004. It sets out the allocation of 128,500 new homes in the Thames Gateway sub-region by 2016. Alongside the housing projections, the statement also identifies work to deliver environmental, social, physical and essential services to support the growth agenda and secure overall sustainability. The statement is not a statutory document, but serves as a collective approach for the three Gateway planning authorities until regional plans come to fruition.
	Statutory planning guidance for the Gateway will be provided through the regional spatial strategies for London, the South East and East. The London Plan was published in February 2004. It has always been an important part of the planning system to co-ordinate new development with the infrastructure it demands. The plan-led system ensures that links between infrastructure and developments are properly investigated. Planning Policy Statement 12 (PPS12) requires that local planning authorities develop a strategic approach to infrastructure provision when preparing local development documents, in terms of transport, water, sewerage, waste and general community facilities.
	Regional planning guidance for the South East and East of England regions is currently under development. It is a planning requirement that RSSs are prepared with the objective of contributing to the achievement of sustainable development. The draft strategies are being developed by the Regional Assemblies who will be expected to take into account community and infrastructure needs in producing their plans, and are duty bound to present several options. It is for example a requirement that regional strategies incorporate transport strategies that set out the transport infrastructure required to support development.
	The Government Offices will be heavily involved in the development of the regional strategies and will work to secure commitments to the Thames Gateway programme not only in terms of housing numbers, but also in terms of the infrastructure needed to support growth.
	In addition, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working closely with other Government Departments to ensure that the raft of community services and infrastructure required to support housing growth will be delivered across the Gateway. This work is led by MISC 22, the Cabinet Committee that oversees the development of the growth areas in England.

School Provision

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many additional (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools will be required under the Government's growth plan for additional houses to be built between 2003 and 2016 in the Thames Gateway.

Keith Hill: It is the responsibility of each local education authority to plan school provision in its area taking account of changes in local population. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department for Education and Skills are working together to assist local authorities in planning future needs in respect of school provision, for example, by providing forecasts of population changes in the Thames Gateway.
	Where plans are developed for new primary schools, or to enlarge any other existing schools, to meet population growth, these must be subject to local consultation before being published. The final decision on the proposals will generally be taken by the local School Organisation Committee or, if they cannot agree unanimously, an independent adjudicator. Where a local education authority proposes to establish a new secondary school they must publish details of the need for the school, inviting other promoters to submit proposals, and the Secretary of State for Education and Skills will decide which of the proposals submitted should be approved.

Sea Defences

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what level of additional sea defences will be required as a result of the Government's growth plan for additional houses to be built between 2003 and 2016 in the Thames Gateway; and where these will be sited.

Keith Hill: Most of the Thames Estuary is already protected to a greater than 1:1000 year level (possibility of 0.1 per cent. of flooding in any one year) until 2030. This includes a generous allowance for future sea level rise until 2030 and is a far higher standard of protection than in most other parts of the UK. Growth in the Thames Gateway will be largely concentrated on previously developed land in existing urban area, reducing the requirement for additional flood defences.
	The Environment Agency is currently carrying out a six-year study of flood risk management called 'Thames Estuary 2100'. This will consider the flood defences that will be needed to protect the Thames Estuary for the next century and where they will need to be sited. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is represented on the steering group to ensure that development does not restrict options arising from the study.
	Redevelopment in the Thames Gateway provides the opportunity to deliver sustainable flood defences. Riverside walkways and green spaces can be used to accommodate occasional flooding as well as providing an attractive setting for development. Sustainable flood management will be integrated with plans for a green space network across the Thames Gateway as well as at locations of new developments, such as on the Greenwich Peninsula.

Standards Board for England

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much funding was allocated to the Standards Board for England in each year since its establishment; and what the estimated cost is for 2005–06.

Phil Hope: The information requested is tabled below.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Grant paid to the Standards Board for England 
		
		
			 2001–02 2.646 
			 2002–03 6.514 
			 2003–04 8.944 
			 2004–05 (9)8.94 
			 2005–06 (10)— 
		
	
	(9) Expected grant
	(10) To be agreed

Travellers

James Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many travellers' sites were available (a) on the latest date for which figures are available and (b) in 1997.

Keith Hill: As at January 2004, the latest date for which published figures are available, there were 313 local authority sites available to Gypsies and Travellers in England. In January 1997, there were 327 local authority sites available.

Travellers

James Gray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the total number of travellers' caravans in England (a) on the latest date for which figures are available, (b) in 1997 and (c) in 1974.

Keith Hill: As at January 2004, the latest date for which published figures are available, there were a total of 14,362 Gypsy and Traveller caravans in England. In January 1997, this figure stood at 12,796. The bi-annual Count commenced in 1979 and therefore data is not available for 1974.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

Mike Hancock: To ask the Solicitor-General if the Attorney-General will make it his policy to adopt the legal opinion of Rabinder Singh QC and Professor Christine Chinkin regarding the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in relation to the Mutual Defence Agreement; and if she will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I have been asked to reply 
	as the Minister responsible for this issue.
	I can confirm that the Government are satisfied that the extension of the Mutual Defence Agreement for a further 10 years is compatible with the UK's obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
	There is a long-standing convention, followed by successive Governments, that neither the fact that the Law Officers have advised on a particular matter, nor the substance of any advice they may have given, is publicly disclosed. This is consistent with paragraphs 2 and 4(d) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Business Regulation

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions her Department has sponsored time-limited regulations on business since 2001.

Nigel Griffiths: The information requested is as follows:
	Commission Regulation (EC) No 772/2004 of 27 April 2004 on the application of Article 81(3) of the EC Treaty to categories of technology transfer agreements came into force on 1 May 2004. Article 11 of the Regulation states that it shall expire on 30 April 2014;
	Commission Regulation (EC) No 1400/2002 of 31 July 2002, the cars block exemption regulating the distribution of new cars in the Community includes an expiry date of 31 May 2010; and
	The Renewables Obligation Order 2002 (SI 2002/914) which applies to electricity suppliers and expires on 31 March 2027.

Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions (a) she and (b) departmental officials have had with the European Commission in respect of the acceptability under EU state aid rules of the UK Government's proposals for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has discussed the matter with Commissioner Monti. DTI officials and the UK Permanent Representation in Brussels remain in close contact with Commission services.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what regulatory impact assessments (a) have been and (b) will be made for those EU Directives which will come into force in the next 12 months.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 1 September 2004, Official Report, column 761W, in my previous capacity as Minister for the Cabinet Office.

TREASURY

Economic Statistics (Yorkshire)

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in (a) Yorkshire and the Humber and (b) City of York pay income tax at the basic or higher rate.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Friend to table 3.13, "Income and Tax by County and Region", and table 3.14, "Total Income by Borough and District or Unitary Authority", on the Inland Revenue website at:
	www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/income distribution/table-313–2001–02.xls
	www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/income distribution/table-3142001–02.xls
	Figures for 2002–03 will be published in November.

Income Tax (Pensioners)

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to the Exchequer would be of raising the minimum level at which income tax is payable by pensioners aged over 75 years to £20,000.

Dawn Primarolo: The estimated full-year cost of raising the personal income tax allowance to £20,000 per year for those aged 75 years and over in 2004–05 is £1.7 billion.
	This estimate excludes any behavioural response to the tax change and is based upon the 2001–02 Survey of Personal Incomes and consistent with Budget 2004.

Income Tax (Pensioners)

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the number of pensioners paying income tax in each year from 1995 to 2004; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Gentleman to table 2.1, "Number of Individual Income Taxpayers" on the Inland Revenue website: www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/income tax/table2 1 september04.xls

Employment (Carlisle)

Eric Martlew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many new jobs have been created in Carlisle since 1997.

Stephen Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Eric Martlew, dated 15 October 2004
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about jobs created in Carlisle. (191352)
	While statistics of new jobs created are not available explicitly, statistics from surveys enable comparisons to be made of net changes, in numbers of jobs, from year-to-year.
	The attached table shows the information requested, relating to jobs in Carlisle, for 1997 and the latest year available, 2002.
	
		Numbers of employees 1 with workplace in Carlisle Parliamentary Constituency: 1997 and 2002
		
			  Number 
			 Numbers of employees Total 
		
		
			 1997 40,600 
			 2002 42,500 
			 Change from 1997 to 2002(12) 1,900 
		
	
	(11) Employee jobs only, not self-employed jobs.
	(12) The 1997 to 2002 change has been rounded to the nearest hundred separately from rounded levels for 1997 and 2002.
	Source:
	1997; Annual Employment Survey, rescaled. 2002; Annual Business Inquiry

Landlord and Tenant Act

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many tax returns included liabilities under the new Section 42A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 in 2003–04.

Dawn Primarolo: Section 42A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 does not impose liabilities to tax. It requires agents to hold the service charge contributions of tenants on trust in an account at a financial institution.
	As those service charge contributions are held in a trust, any income arising on the tenants' contributions is taxable in the same way as any other funds held in a trust. There is consequently no requirement for trustees to identify to the Revenue that their trusts were established in consequence of section 42A, and in many cases trust arrangements were already in place when the section 42A requirement came into force.

Tax Credits

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce the number of working tax credit overpayments.

Dawn Primarolo: The tax credits system is designed to be flexible: claimants' payments can be adjusted in year if their circumstances or income change. The aim is to pay the right amount to claimants over the year.
	The Inland Revenue's Code of Practice 26, "What happens if we have paid you too much tax credit?", sets out the Inland Revenue's approach to tax credits overpayments and the several reasons why someone might find at the end of the year that they have been paid too much tax credit.

Tax Credits

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to allow tax credit claimants to make in-year adjustments to their expected annual employment income for changes in income of less than £500 per year; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Entitlement to tax credits is based on the income of the current tax year if that is lower than the previous year income. Claimants can ask to have their award adjusted during the year, to reflect their estimate of current year income, if they wish.
	Otherwise, underpaid tax credit will be paid out when the award is finalised at the year end.